News

At the start of March, the French regulator CSA announced its decision to grant Radio France with a licence to broadcast its six radio stations nationally on DAB+. This article touches on the potential of DAB+ and the reasons behind Radio France's investment in DAB+ digital radio as communicated by Radio France CEO Syvile Veil in an interview with Les Echos.

WorldDAB has announced it will run a DAB+ information workshop at the annual consumer distribution networks event - MedPi 2019 - taking place in Paris on 2-4 April 2019.The workshop, jointly organised by MedPi and WorldDAB, will take place on Wednesday 3 April at 16:00 CET, and will focus on the accelerated deployment of DAB+ digital radio in France and how retailers can benefit from new business opportunities represented by the growing DAB+ market.

In response to the accelerated rollout of DAB+ across Europe and beyond, WorldDAB has launched the Spectrum and Network Implementation Committee (SNIC) to support the implementation of DAB+ networks. The first seminar of the WorldDAB Spectrum and Network Implementation Committee, titled ‘Best practice for implementation of SFN networks’, will take place in Budapest, on 22 May. Click here to register.

Continental's new DAB/ DAB+ radios include the Controller Area Network (CAN) bus technology for large vehicles. The radios can also accommodate the connection of two smartphones simultaneously that operators can access both business and personal data, or two operators can pair their mobiles. Continental offers a wide range of solutions for digital radio reception, to enable builders and fleet managers to be prepared for future European standards.

In this written interview, GatesAir CEO Bruce Swail touches on the company's plans for the near future, anticipating international and large-scale growth in DAB+ radio adoption, and touching on what the company will be showcasing at NAB this April.

In this written interview, Radio France CEO Sibyle Veil touches on the potential of DAB+, the reasons behind Radio France's investment in DAB+ and the public broadcaster's strategy in dealing with increasing competition from tech giants.

The CSA's call for application which closed on 16 March marked the first time the Walloon regulator issued a call for tenders for both DAB+ and FM frequencies.

Audi has rolled out its novelty "Function on Demand" service allowing customers to rent or permanently activate additional pre-installed services including infotainment options such as DAB+ digital radio, as well as other features including Matrix LED headlights and extended parking assistance.

Digital radio continues to make significant progress in Germany, with over 250 radio stations already available to listeners in DAB+. Most major radio stations available on the FM band are already broadcasting in DAB+, something which has helped increase interest in DAB+, with the number of households using DAB+ rising to 18.1 percent in 2018, compared to 15.7 percent in 2017.

France has removed DMB - previously expected to become the standard for digital transmission - from its national legislation in favour of DAB+, highlighting yet again the country's commitment to digital audio broadcasting. France plans to launch two DAB+ national multiplexes early next year, with regional and local networks already operating across a number of locations.